Saturday, March 16, 2013

Stories around the net

The knife's marlin spike, for instance, was a mainstay of
1800s mariners and their signature knots.—but seafaring wasn't all fun
and knot-tying. Though the blade's rounded tip may seem impractical, a
stab wound at sea almost always meant certain death, so you generally
wanted to avoid stabbing-conducive situations at all costs. Some of the
components have kept their original purpose, though, and as the
workman's knife evolved into a military tool, one of these—the can
opener—was added so soldiers in the field could dig into their canned
food rations.

Faustina the Elder (A.D.
100-141) was said to have worn at least three hundred wigs,
while Caligula (A.D. 12-41) was fond of a large capillameus,
a full wig. Though, sometimes bald Romans, both men and women,
would paint hair on their heads rather than wear a wig. The
popularity of wigs and artificial hair was fodder for Martial’s
and Juvenal’s acerbic wit as they made fun of women who
used wigs to look younger and old men who hoped to hide their
age (Corson 1965).

At the time, head lice were everywhere, and nitpicking was painful and
time-consuming. Wigs, however, curbed the problem. Lice stopped
infesting people’s hair—which had to be shaved for the peruke to fit—and
camped out on wigs instead. Delousing a wig was much easier than
delousing a head of hair: you’d send the dirty headpiece to a wigmaker,
who would boil the wig and remove the nits.

WSJ telling you what all of us (outside of the elite echobox) already knew: most women chose the "mommy track" of less demanding jobs, part time jobs, or working from home, despite lower wages and less chance to get promoted.

Been there, done that.
Remember this the next time you read about women "making less than men".

Several newspaper reports from the time said he had been found "fully dressed with his violin strapped to his body".
There have been various theories about what happened to the
instrument which range from it floating away to being stolen by someone
involved in handling the bodies of the deceased.
A violin was returned to Wallace Hartley's fiancee Maria
Robinson, in Bridlington in East Yorkshire, and a transcript of a
telegram dated 19 July 1912 to Canada's Provincial of Nova Scotia was
found in her diary. 'Miracles happen'
It said: "I would be most grateful if you could convey my
heartfelt thanks to all who have made possible the return of my late
fiance's violin."

the slander law here is one reason you can't point fingers at those stealing money etc. Often the witnesses fear for their lives, but if the press publishes the "rumor" they can be sued for libel. Which is why we knew the mayor was thinking about a "hit job" on his rival, and when it happened (killing the rival's sons and our nephew but not his rival, who wasn't there ) we knew the story behind the murders, but we couldn't name names.

And those reporters who look too deeply into corruption also end up dead, which is why we are number two in the world for reporters murdered.

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nor are blogs the only thing being censored in the UK: